Home Sweet Home

Safely back in Barcelona again, after an overnight flight from Rio and a late arrival in Madrid, which meant us missing our connecting flight. Lots of queueing since Rio! Arriving at our house and walking around it was like re-acquianting with old friends and the comfort that provides. Then we always like to walk around our barrio on arriving and say hello to people and notice any changes. It helps us feel grounded and connected. Happy to report that so far, despite the recession here, that the changes so far have been positive. Our newsagent on the corner has done pretty major renovations, which include having a cafe in the shop, whilst retaining its charm. Another is the change of ownership of a neglected Spanish cafe bar and the transformation into a French bistrot with terrace, which is now French owned. We'll walk further afield tomorrow and report more. In the meantime, our bodies, which are still only at 5pm Rio time, have just been fed with Spanish ham, pan con tomate, patatas bravas, deep fried baby octopus (chipirones) and a wee glass of Spanish red. Tomorrow the unpacking will start.

This blip is of a little house in the Colonias, which have been blipped by both Bb and I before and is part of a rehousing project. More houses have been left now and are boarded up, while others like this one are still occupied and must be just waiting for a date to vacate.